Saturday, March 26, 2016

Florida Defunds Planned Parenthood, Liberals Fume

Yesterday, Florida Governor Rick Scott signed House Bill (HB) 1411 to eliminate all state funding of any organization that performs abortions. The new law that takes effect July 1st also bans sale of aborted fetus remains and enacts requirements for fetus disposal. Planned Parenthood, which is spending about as much money fighting the legislation as it receives annually from the state, may contest the law in court as unconstitutional.

“Abortionists will finally be held to the same standard as all other physicians who perform invasive procedures in a non-hospital setting by the requirement to have admitting privileges or a transfer agreement with a nearby hospital. It is incomprehensible that opponents suggest the bill makes women less safe.”-- Ingrid Delgado, Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops

State funding of abortion was already prohibited in Florida, but the law signed by the Republican governor also cut off funding for preventive services at clinics that also provide abortions.

The law appeared to be aimed at Planned Parenthood, which said on Friday that it could mean the end of birth control, cancer screenings, tests for diseases and other services for thousands of low-income women in Florida.

Cecile Richards, the president of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, said in a statement that the new law seemed “designed to rip health care away from those most at risk.”

Starting July 1, abortion clinics will be required to have admitting privileges or transfer agreements with a nearby hospital. They also will face annual inspections by the state as part of a law that sponsor Sen. Kelli Stargel, R-Lakeland, said is about ensuring women’s safety.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Florida, which has an ongoing lawsuit over a mandatory 24-hour abortion waiting period passed last year, said it hasn’t decided whether it will sue the state over the new law. The organization did decry Scott’s decision in a statement by executive director Howard Simon.

The law redefines the trimesters of a pregnancy, validating claims by state regulators last summer alleging Florida’s Planned Parenthood sites violated their licenses. And the funding cuts could affect six Planned Parenthood clinics.

The bill, which passed largely along party lines, restricts state agencies, local governments and Medicaid managed-care plans from contracting with organizations that own, operate or are affiliated with clinics that perform elective abortions. Duval County is one of the health departments with a Planned Parenthood contract that may be affected by that provision.

Senate sponsor Kelli Stargel, R-Lakeland, said on the Senate floor that the bill would likely close six of Florida’s 65 abortion clinics.

Additionally, the bill changes the definition of a first trimester to the period from fertilization through the end of the 11th week of pregnancy. That’s a different definition than the state has used in the past, but it’s consistent with an administrative action last year by the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration, which alleged that five clinics — including three Planned Parenthood facilities — performed second-trimester abortions without the proper licenses. Clinics have filed challenges, contending that the state changed the definition of a first trimester without notice.

“Would I like a bill that outlaws abortion? Sure. But that’s not what this bill does. Because that’s unconstitutional. Because we’re allowed to have a woman’s right to choose," Stargel argued prior to the bill passing the Senate.

Meanwhile, the Florida Family Policy Council is claiming a major victory. Last year the council’s John Stemberger criticized Governor Rick Scott for not banning state funding from flowing to Planned Parenthood after false accusations last summer that planned parenthood was illegally selling fetal remains caused a national uproar.

“We would have liked for him by executive order to de-fund Planned Parenthood without having to go through this process," Stemberger said. "But we are pleased he signed this today. He did the right thing, and so we’re happy about that. We wish he would have exercised leadership, but he followed the leadership of the legislature and the same result has occurred.”

Florida’s Planned Parenthood Clinics say they’ll weather the coming storm. Public dollars are already prohibited from funding abortions, but the bill would cut off reimbursements for routine preventive services as well if they are done by an abortion provider.

The law, which takes effect July 1, requires doctors performing abortions to have admitting privileges at a nearby hospital, requires annual licensure inspections for clinics and bans the purchase, sell or transfer of fetal remains. The law upgrades the failure to properly dispose of fetal tissue from a second-degree misdemeanor to a first-degree misdemeanor.

A similar law in Texas, which women’s health activists say has helped shut down several abortion clinics there, is under review by the U.S. Supreme Court. During a debate on the Senate floor earlier this year, sponsor Kelli Stargel, R-Lakeland, said the bill would likely close six of Florida's 65 abortion clinics.

[Last year, Gov.] Scott’s investigation . . . did cite three clinics for performing abortions after the first trimester. Planned Parenthood disputed those allegations, and the case is still pending in court. A separate criminal investigation prompted by House Republicans turned up nothing.